Mariota
threw for two touchdowns and ran for another and No. 2 Oregon defeated
California 55-16 on Saturday night in a drenched Pac-12 opener for both
teams.

"I've been playing in the rain since I was a little kid.
Hawaii has its passing showers," the sophomore quarterback said. "So it
really doesn't bother me."

Bralon Addison returned two punts for
touchdowns and Byron Marshall ran for 130 yards and two more scores for
the Ducks (4-0, 1-0).

The game was played as a strong storm swept
across the Pacific Northwest, cutting power to more than 26,500
customers in Oregon. It was a sloppy mess on the field, with eight
fumbles -- four for each team -- in the first half alone. The Ducks
handled the soggy conditions better, building a 41-3 halftime lead.

The wind and rain all but shut down the "Bear Raid" offense that new head coach Sonny Dykes has installed at Cal (1-3, 0-1).

Cal
freshman quarterback Jared Goff went into the game as the national
leader with an average of 435.3 yards passing a game. He completed just 3
of 6 passes for 11 yards in the first quarter before he was replaced
with backup Zach Kline.

Goff, making his first start on the road, simply couldn't grip the ball.

"The
ball was slipping out of his hand. We're not quite sure why but it
was," Dykes said. "So we felt like were having a hard time getting
anything done. Couldn't throw it at all. We needed to make a change and
it felt like it gave us a better chance to move the football and score
some points."

Mariota, whose name is mentioned as an early Heisman
Trophy candidate, completed 11 of 24 passes for 114 yards and ran for
another 33 yards before coach Mark Helfrich sat him during the third
quarter.

Oregon coach Mark Helfrich also suggested Mariota's
Hawaiian upbringing had something to do with his ability to shake off
the storm.

"Playing on the beach as a kid, I thing, was paying off," Helfrich said.

Oregon
opened the game with Marshall's 14-yard scoring run. Mariota threw two
touchdown passes, a 19-yarder to Josh Huff and a 14-yarder to Daryle
Hawkins before Marshall ran for a 25-yard score to make it 27-0.

But
the start of the game was also costly for Oregon. Running back
De'Anthony Thomas was hurt while returning the opening kickoff. He
grasped his lower right leg and had to be helped off the field. He
reappeared after the half on crutches, but because Oregon does not
discuss injuries it is unclear how serious it is.

Afterward,
Thomas said he hurt his right ankle, but it had not been X-rayed. He
said he was trying to make a move but "it was slippery out there."

"I'm
very focused," said Thomas, who was uncertain about his status for next
week's game at Colorado. "I'll get back there when I can."

The
speedy junior leads the Ducks with 338 yards rushing and six touchdowns.
He has 485 all-purpose yards through Oregon's first three games.

Mariota
ran 2 yards to score in the second quarter before Addison's 75-yard
punt return for a touchdown. Cal finally got on the board as time ran
out with Vincenzo D'Amato's 46-yard field goal.

Addison's 67-yard
punt return for a score early in the second quarter made is 48-3. The
only other Duck with two punt returns for touchdowns in a game was Cliff
Harris against New Mexico in 2010.

Thomas Tyner ran for a 21-yard
touchdown for the Ducks before Jeffrey Coprich pushed in a yard for a
TD for Cal to make it 55-10. Kline hit James Grisom with a 7-yard
scoring pass for the final margin.

Kline completed 18 of 37 passes for 165 yards.

Ducks
defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti likened the weather to the so-called
"Toilet Bowl" between Oregon and Oregon State in 1983, the last college
game to end in a scoreless tie before the NCAA changed its rules.

"Those conditions were pretty terrible," Aliotti said. "But I don't know if it was as windy."

Both teams were coming of bye weeks.

The
Bears' last outing was a 52-34 loss to No. 4 Ohio State on Sept 14. The
Ducks are the third ranked opponent that Cal has faced; the team also
lost to then-No. 22 Northwestern in the season opener. All three teams
are undefeated.

Oregon put up easy nonconference victories over
Nicholls State, Virginia and Tennessee. The Ducks have averaged 61.3
points per game, ranked second nationally, while allowing opponents just
9 points a game.

Cal hung close with Oregon for a good part of
their last meeting, trailing just 24-17 midway through the 3rd quarter
last year. But Mariota led the then-No. 3 Ducks on a 35-0 run for a
59-17 victory in Strawberry Canyon. He matched a school record with six
touchdown passes in that game.

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